Adopting Yoseph! WE NEED YOU!

As mentioned in the previous post, we have received our referral! We are so excited and so in love with our little guy! But there is a bit of a harsh reality--adoption is expensive. We received our referral quickly and have a large chunk of money due NEXT WEEK! Our plan has always been to apply for a matching grant and to send out support letters so that others can share in the joy of our journey. Thankfully, we were just approved for a matching grant! And thankfully, we have our letter written! BUT, snail mail won't get us the turnaround we need by NEXT WEEK! So, we are using the resources of social media to get the word out! Below is a copy of our letter and the letter from Lifesong, our grant provider. Please prayerfully consider joining us in our journey to bring our little one home! If you have any questions or concerns, please contact us! Thank you in advance for your love and support!

*Online giving is available and fast! See the bottom of our letter for details!

**I can email you the letter (with pictures of Yoseph!) if you are interested. It's a little easier to read that way!

Although we can't show his picture on here, if you contact me, I will GLADLY send you his cute face!

And We Are Back!

As you can imagine, our lives have changed a bit in the past year. To say the least. Hosanna just turned a year old last month! She is so much fun and keeps me very busy (as you can tell from the lack of blogging)! I treasure every moment with her and am so thankful to be her mommy! We could also say that our lives have changed a bit in the past three days! On Wednesday we got 'The Call' we had been waiting for! We received our referral for the most adorable little 3ish/4ish year old boy! He is just a doll! Chunky cheeks just like Hosanna! We are praising God for this precious little one and praying for him as we continue with the process to bring him home!

Hosanna is Crawling!

Hosanna's First Swing

Today we went to the zoo and Hosanna had her first experience swinging! As soon as I let go of the swing she giggled and giggled! I think she liked it! :)

Show Us Your Life

Kelly’s Korner is a blog I have been reading pretty consistently for several months. Every week she has a different “Show Us Your Life” topic and other bloggers can post about the topic too. This week’s topic was to share a typical day in your life. So here it is...

A typical day with Hosanna Belle. Although I loved being a teacher, being a stay at home mom was always my dream. Thankfully, the Lord also gave Matt that same desire for me. I am so grateful that Matt works so hard to support our family so that I am able to stay home with our little one. I thank God daily for allowing me to have the best job in the world! Spending the day with Hosanna is amazing! She brings such joy to my heart in everything she does.


8:00 - Wake up (surprisingly with no alarm) and wake Hosanna. I LOVE waking Hosanna up! She always gives me the biggest smile, melts my heart! Feed Hosanna and change her. Take a pic/video of her with my phone and send it to daddy, grandparents, aunt and uncles. Yes, we do this every day! All of the family look forward to their daily viewings of Hosanna.

8:30 - Head downstairs to eat breakfast. Hosanna swings or plays while I eat and check email. Play downstairs, start a load of laundry.

9:50 - Head to Hosanna’s room to read her Bible story. Hosanna naps. I try to do my quiet time and nap if I’m tired.

11:00 - Hosanna wakes up and we play in her room or my room.

12:00 Hosanna eats and then I eat. Somedays I watch “What Not To Wear” while I eat! We play some more or go for a walk.

2:00 - Hosanna naps. I clean whatever needs to be cleaned, plan dinner, etc.

4:00 - Hosanna wakes up and eats. We play until daddy gets home.

5:30ish - Daddy comes home and we hangout and then eat and play some more.

7:00 - Hosanna eats, has her cereal, takes a bath (her favorite!) and gets ready for bed.

8:00 - I rock baby girl for a few minutes, sing/hum to her, pray for her and put her down.

The rest of the night Matt and I hang out and try to go to bed around 10. But as I type right now, it’s 1:00am! Yikes! Too much coffee tonight!

I definitely am a planner and love a consistent schedule, but we are not always at home all day. Some days we go swimming at the Y, go eat lunch with daddy (we eat, he works), go to Bible Study, have play dates, run errands, go to the zoo, etc. We love to be out and about!

Thank you, Lord, for the blessing of a day!

Why I Love Being Hosanna's Mommy

- she is a blessing from God
- she is a miracle
- she smiles and it melts my heart
- she is a cuddle bug
- she is created perfectly
- she has a precious baby smell
- she makes me laugh by her cute noises
- she is just fun to be with
- she is a sweet baby
- she laughs at my silly faces and songs
- she is adorable
- she has a beautiful smile
- and on and on and on...

Hosanna's First Sled Ride

Today I took Hosanna on her first sled ride! We got her all bundled up in her precious snow outfit and headed outside. The snow in mom and dad's backyard was perfect for sledding! It was nice and thick with a crunchy layer of ice on top. Hosanna just looked around with those big blue eyes as we went down the hill. I think she enjoyed her first sled ride!